Description

1950 Connie Mack Bronze Bust from the Rotunda of Shibe Park.
Masterful bronze sculpture is one of four that once resided within
the rotunda of Philadelphia's Shibe Park, later renamed Connie Mack
Stadium, where the Tall Tactician led the Philadelphia Athletics to
seven American League flags and five World Championships in the
last forty-two of his fifty seasons at the reins of the White
Elephants. It is believed the creation of these busts coincided
with the legendary manager's retirement in 1950. This bust was
rescued from the edifice upon its demolition in 1976. The bronze
measures fifteen inches in height, with the original concrete base
adding five and a half inches of life. A modern plaque is affixed
to the front of the base. Minor oxidation to the bronze only adds
to the vintage appeal. The bust was last displayed at the
Philadelphia Athletics Hall of Fame, the same source as the plaques
likewise presented within this Signature auction. Third party
shipping required due to weight (35 pounds).

The Philadelphia Athletics Hall of Fame Collection

Though it's been nearly six decades since the City of Brotherly
Love watched its White Elephants march west to Kansas City, the
team that Connie Mack piloted for five decades remains close to the
hearts of most baseball historians. Surely the remarkable reign of
the Tall Tactician, and the enduring memory of his dark-suited
lanky frame on the dugout steps, plays a role in the team's
"staying power," but the lofty peaks and deep valleys of the team's
trajectory through the first half of the twentieth century likewise
capture the imagination. It seems that the A's were always either
the greatest team in baseball or the worst, with two remarkable but
short-lived dynasties rising like volcanic islands from an ocean of
mediocrity. The collection offered here tends to focus on those
happier times at Shibe Park, a selection of bronze plaques
displayed at the Philadelphia Athletics Historical Society,
remembering the greatest players ever to wear the A's uniform. Each
measures 11x15.5" in size and is joined by the paper placard that
hung below indicating year of induction.